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The Town of Greenwich has one political body,
but consists of several distinct sections with their own mailing
addresses and zip codes, such as Cos Cob, Riverside, Old
Greenwich and Greenwich (sometimes referred to as central or
downtown Greenwich). Byram, Glenville, Pemberwick and Rock Ridge
are other neighborhoods that use the Greenwich name and zip code
for their mailing addresses. There are many other neighborhoods
within Greenwich such as Belle Haven, Banksville, Chickahominy,
Milbank, Milbrook and Mianus to name a few.
The downtown area of Greenwich consists primarily of Greenwich
Avenue, a one way street that has many restaurants, boutiques,
and antique shops, all located on extraordinarily expensive
retail space. Greenwich Avenue is also somewhat unique in that
it does not have traffic lights, but instead has individual
traffic officers at each intersection directing traffic. The
sections of the town each have smaller shopping areas, but these
are much smaller than Greenwich Avenue.
Real estate in Greenwich is very expensive when compared to the
national average, and is about on par with some nearby
communities such as Darien, Westport and New Canaan. The high
property values, however, cause property taxes to be very low,
on a percentage basis. Greenwich is officially considered the
wealthiest town in Connecticut.
The town has four beaches on Long Island Sound which are
Greenwich Point, Byram Beach, Island Beach and Captain's Island.
Originally, Greenwich Point (often referred to as Tod's Point),
which is on a peninsula and also includes picnic areas, was open
only to town residents and their guests. However, a lawyer from
nearby Stamford sued, saying his rights to freedom of assembly
were threatened because he was not allowed to go there. The
lower courts disagreed, but the Supreme Court of Connecticut
agreed, and Greenwich was forced to amend its beach access
policy to all four beaches. A single-visit beach pass for
non-residents is $10 per person and $20 per car and must be
purchased at the town hall or the Eastern Greenwich Civic
Center. |
